


The Ascendancy of a Princess

by dormiensa



Category: Fairy Tales & Related Fandoms, Original Work
Genre: F/M, Fairy Tale Style, Revisionist Fairy Tale
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-16
Updated: 2018-09-16
Packaged: 2019-07-12 21:05:31
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,241
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16003289
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dormiensa/pseuds/dormiensa
Summary: A tale of the progress of a young princess to sovereignty.





	The Ascendancy of a Princess

In a land far away dwelt a small kingdom nestled in the valley of the great peaks. Though not a mighty one, the kingdom was prosperous and enjoyed peaceful relations with its neighbours. 

The king and queen of the land were kind rulers whose strong sense of duty made them diligent and mindful of the well-being of their people. The people loved their king and queen, and thus, there was much joy and celebration upon the birth of the little princess, who would be their future queen.

The princess proved a quiet, sweet-tempered girl, who obediently learned her duties and whose kindness to all, regardless of rank, made her beloved within the palace. 

To ensure that the young princess would become a capable and generous ruler to her people, the king sent an invitation to the greatest university in all the lands for a royal tutor. Of the candidates sent forth from this venerable institution, one was chosen of kindly but firm disposition and possessed of a wisdom born from extensive travels to the many lands far and wide. Under his tutelage, the young princess learned of many things beyond even the knowledge of the oldest of the king’s counsellors. 

Among the king’s counsellors and ministers, his most trusted was the Royal Advisor, a capable man he had known since boyhood. The Royal Advisor had a son, of similar age to the princess, and in seeking to find suitable counsellors for her future rule, the king had proclaimed the betrothal between the princess and the son of this most trusted minister. Unusual, though, the proclamation also stipulated that, should the princess find her future husband unsuitable for the role, she could dissolve said contract. This unusual provision was born of the king and queen’s own union, for they had found not only suitable partners but love, and they wished this for their beloved child.

Alas, the rule of this benevolent king and queen was short-lived. They succumbed to the illness that swept the kingdom and nearby lands. Before his death, the king proclaimed the Royal Advisor as Regent to his daughter, who had seen but six years of the sun, and charged him with her care and that of his beloved people. The newly appointed Regent solemnly vowed that the kingdom would not come to ruin. 

True to his word, the Regent saw to the recovery of their ravaged kingdom. Prosperity soon returned to their lands. Alas, it soon became clear that while a capable man, the Regent was also clever and ambitious, and so long as he retained his position, he would effectuate his own gains. He had wisdom enough not to seek usurpation, but to his trusted allies, he revealed his intention to influence the future queen so that she might appoint her betrothed as king once she ascended the throne. In times past, when there was unrest or she had become incapable of ruling her kingdom, a queen could appoint her husband as king and pass command to him. The Regent could thereupon ensure that he remained the uncontested Royal Advisor of the land.

Those not of the Regent’s circle of influence wisely pretended ignorance of his plot and did not openly thwart his rule. They thusly retained their positions and minimized any harm that might befall the kingdom should the Regent’s rule turn tyrannical. These ministers quietly allied with the Royal Tutor, in hopes of protecting the princess and ensuring that she be not misled by the Regent. 

The deceased king and queen had indeed chosen well. The Royal Tutor avoided the politics of the court and regularly reported to the Regent of the princess’ progress in her studies. Thus reassured that the Royal Tutor posed no threat to him, the Regent left the tutelage of his young charge to the learned man. 

The Royal Tutor, mindful of his duty and his vow to the deceased king and queen, educated the young princess. She was permitted to roam the castle, to learn its secrets and its management and maintenance by the staff. The only restrictions placed upon her explorations were that she never wander alone nor be discovered by the Regent and his allies. The princess was obedient and always brought her handmaiden. This handmaiden had been carefully chosen among the servant girls by her beloved nurse, who in turn had been carefully selected by her mother, the queen. This companion was faithful to her mistress and often brought fresh news and gossip from the servants’ quarters.

Also unbeknownst to the Regent, the Royal Tutor ensured that the princess learned of the well-being and management of her kingdom through those ministers allied with him. She learned of taxes and the harvest and foreign relations and other such knowledge that would inform her future rule. Before she died, the queen had told the Royal Tutor of a secret chamber adjacent the Great Council Room wherein she often listened to the king at council. She had discovered the chamber by chance and, having been raised with an interest in court affairs but barred from attending council meetings, had learned of the state of the kingdom and often advised the king. Once the princess turned ten years of age, the Royal Tutor began bringing her to this chamber and answered her queries on decisions made, proclamations decreed, and the merits of such rulings. 

Made thus aware of the Regent’s power and ambition and the precariousness of her position, the princess maintained a respectfulness toward him, and as she grew and was allowed to attend court events, she became acquainted with all at court, learning of their merits, their intentions toward her, their circles of influence, and their weaknesses. 

On the eve of her fifteenth birthday and during a rare instance of freedom, the princess was walking the royal gardens when she came upon her betrothed. He politely inquired after her health and asked to join her. She acquiesced. They talked of inconsequential things and, at their journey’s end, the young man pressed a kiss to her hand, coaxing a promise that he would have the first dance the following evening. He then winked and sauntered off.

The princess frowned at his retreating form. To be sure, her betrothed was a charming young man, but their encounters in recent years had not endeared him to her. He was not involved in the council and had no cares but for his own pleasure. He spent his days seeking amusements: hunting, tavern excursions, or travels to neighbouring kingdoms. While popular at court, especially among the young ladies, he gave no indication that he could support her when she came of age and took on her responsibilities as queen. 

She knew of the conditions of her betrothal and of the custom to be properly courted for one year prior to marriage. Her nurse had counselled her to use this courtship to test her betrothed, and she saw its merit. Thus, during the celebration ball, she danced with him and allowed him to arrange future outings.

It was on one such outing, a chaperoned walk about the gardens of the Regent’s family estate, that the princess tumbled upon the path and sprained her ankle. In his panicked concern for her well-being and in the face of her tears, he impulsively promised to protect her always from harm. This elicited the first genuine smile from the princess. 

As they became better acquainted, the princess encouraged him to speak of his travels to neighbouring lands. He was initially taken aback at her questions regarding the peoples in those lands, but he readily responded and gradually came to view his visits in a different light. And when he returned to those lands or traversed to new ones, he would now come home with reports of more substantial worth than the idle gossip at court or how he had enjoyed himself. 

It was only upon realizing that her betrothed was unaware of his father’s plans that the princess ceased her suspicions of him, although she watched him carefully for signs of trustworthiness and kept guard over her heart.

The princess’ sixteenth birthday and coming of age soon approached. The Regent met with her to discuss preparations for her crowning ceremony and the week of celebrations to follow. He also presented his arguments for proclaiming his son as king. He noted that the princess was young and that the kingdom had prospered under the co-regency of her own parents. The princess thanked him for his suggestion and concern for the well-being of her kingdom and promised to consider the matter most carefully. The Regent was momentarily surprised by the princess’ lack of commitment, but she reassured him, stating she merely wished to act as a queen might and not come to any decision without thought and deliberation. The Regent left the meeting thus satisfied that his plans would come at long last to fruition.

He was therefore bewildered on the day of the event. The auspicious day had begun with the ceremony wherein the princess was formally declared queen. As her first act, the queen insisted upon a formal renewal of loyalty and obeisance from each of her ministers to the crown; they would swear to uphold their offices for the continued benefit of the kingdom. The wedding then followed, but no crowning of her husband as king occurred. 

That evening, after the festivities at court, the new queen and her consort retired to the royal chambers, and once alone, the queen extracted her consort’s promise to support her rule by remaining at her side, never leaving the palace grounds so as to uphold his courtship vow of protecting her from harm. He promised with alacrity and declared that his word had always been his bond. The queen smiled sweetly at this bold pronouncement and proceeded to share in a toast to their marriage. After he drank of his wine, which she had laced with a sleeping draught, she helped him into the bed and made sure he was comfortable before also settling in for the night. 

The following morning, the queen was accosted by the former Regent, who demanded explanation for her failure to crown her husband. The queen calmly called for the Royal Tutor and the head of the royal guard. In their presence, she provided proofs that, prior to their marriage, her husband had fathered several illegitimate children by servant girls and women of ill-repute and that these women had been paid by the former Regent to maintain silence and provide for said children. The queen pointed out that this act could be construed as recognition of paternity and thus pose a threat in the line of succession to any issue of the queen’s union with her husband. She could not thusly endanger her crown and the stability of her kingdom. 

The queen then produced the proofs that she, the Royal Tutor, and their allied ministers had gathered over the years of the former Regent’s many abuses of his position, from monies meant to support and protect her people but mysteriously waylaid (and a similar sum then appearing in the former Regent’s coffers) to proclamations solely purposed to increase his powers and privileges and those of his allies, to the detriment of the kingdom. The queen referred to past reports of poor harvest and civil unrest that would have gone unacknowledged but for the efforts of those counsellors at court who were not in league with the former Regent.

In the face of such evidence, the queen bade the former Regent choose: either to resign his position and leave the court or be put to trial for treason. The former Regent sat as one stunned. Finally, he agreed to retire to his estate and exited the room with as much dignity as he could muster. His allies were individually summoned and similarly given the choice of resignation or public exposure. They wisely chose the former.

For the next year, the queen put all her efforts into proving that she was a capable ruler. Through the wisdom of her new council and her new Royal Advisor (her former tutor), she made certain that her kingdom continued to flourish. Her people hailed her as benevolent as her parents and loved her. 

While she had been thus focussed on her role as queen, her marriage remained unconsummated. She reminded her consort that he had yet to enact his avowal of support. Until he proved his worth, theirs would be a marriage of policy only; he was accorded one year. In the event of failure, the union would be annulled. Meanwhile, he was made a part of her council. Though bound to the court by his promise on their wedding night, his friendships and ties with neighbouring kingdoms proved favourable upon the arrival of dignitaries to discuss enhancement of trade relations. 

After six months of being thus confined within the palace grounds, he begged release from his pledge. The queen agreed, stating she merely wished to test him, and appointed him ambassador. 

On his initial embassies, the Royal Ambassador was accompanied by the Royal Advisor’s assistant and favourable reports were returned of his warm reception at the royal courts. The Royal Ambassador succeeded in establishing relations with a more distant kingdom and trade soon flourished between the two countries. 

True to her word, upon their first wedding anniversary, the queen lauded her consort’s deeds and willingly brought him into her bed.

**Author's Note:**

> MORAL OF THE STORY: a princess does not have to be a witless damsel in distress.


End file.
